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The Last Wolf

Author: Mini Grey

Publisher: Jonathan Cape

Review

One day, Little Red puts on her hunting gear, packs her lunchbox and heads into the woods to catch a wolf. Fortunately, Mum knows that there are no wolves left in the woods, so Little Red will be safe. Red wanders deep into the shadowy woods until she finds a strange door where she meets the Last Wolf, the Last lynx and the Last Bear.

The animals tell Little Red all about the Good Old Days, when the world was awash with flowers and dripping in honey. Red feels terrible that the forest the animals once roamed freely in has been so reduced – but there is something she can do to help.

The Last Wolf ranks alongside Mini Grey’s other picture book masterpieces, with all her trademark rich, characterful illustration, quirky humour and perfect pacing. The story has an environmental message but is in no way preachy or boring, and the final spreads have a real sense of poignancy.

Mini Grey was given her name after being born in a mini in a car park in South Wales. After taking a foundation Course in Fine Art, she studied for an English degree at UCL, afterwards working as a theatre designer, then a primary teacher, before studying for an MA in sequential design at Brighton University.

Mini's first picture book for children, Egg Drop, a surreal story of an egg that dreams of being able to fly, was published in 2002. It established her as both a visually exciting illustrator of detailed, colourful artwork and a highly accomplished storyteller, who often narrates from an unusual point of view, such as that of the pea in The Pea and the Princess (2003) (shortlisted for the Kate Greenaway illustration award); the biscuit in Biscuit Bear (2004) - winner of the Nestlé Smarties Gold Prize (under 5s category) - and the spoon in The Adventures of the Dish and the Spoon (2006).

When Lucy finds an injured baby otter on the riverbank, she helps take care of him in her gran's Wildlife Rescue Centre. This heart-warming animal tale, with a sprinkling of Christmas magic, has short chapters and black-and-white drawings.